Even if his ending seasons as a Test player were not as productive, the statistics of Cheteshwar Pujara still firmly place him in the list of India’s all-time greatest red-ball players. His worth wasn’t always in runs he scored but in the manner he played, the duration spent at the crease, and in the manner he wore down bowling attacks to lay the foundation for others to win.
Pujara Among India’s Top Test Run-Scorers
With 7195 runs in 103 Tests, Cheteshwar Pujara sits eighth on India’s all-time Test run-scorers list. His 6529 runs at No. 3 stand second only to Rahul Dravid, reflecting on how vital he was in a position earmarked for India’s most technically proficient batters.
More Than Runs: Balls Faced Paint the True Picture
The reality of the statistics related to Cheteshwar Pujara lies in the sheer volume of deliveries he faced. Between 2009 and 2023, he faced no fewer than 16,217 deliveries. Only four players in world cricket-Joe Root, Alastair Cook, Steven Smith, and Azhar Ali-faced more during this period.
He was getting out once in every 98.3 balls, which made him fifth among 19 great batsmen who aggregated 5000+ Test runs in that period. That kind of endurance was crucial in breaking up top-class attacks and offering solidity in difficult conditions.
Relative Endurance: Kohli and Rahane Lag
Among Indians with 5000+ runs in Pujara’s career:
Virat Kohli (8479 runs) got out every 88 balls
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Ajinkya Rahane (5066 runs) every 78.5 balls
Pujara’s better defensive mettle turned him into India’s default anchor, frequently soaking up pressure as stroke-players thrived around him.
Cheteshwar Pujara in Australia: The Ultimate Grit Test
Australia extracted the best from Pujara. In 11 Tests, he had scored 993 runs at 47.28. Yet more indicative was the 2657 balls he survived, for a strike rate of 37.37 and an incredible 126.5 balls per wicket—the highest among 66 foreign batsmen with 15+ innings in Australia since 1990.
His career-defining series came in 2018-19, when he faced 1258 balls in seven innings, scoring 521 runs earning two Player of the Match awards in the process.
Pujara: The Glue in India’s Partnerships
Pujara’s contribution was usually the rock at the other end. Whereas he had run scored 7195 runs, the total runs partnership during his stay at the crease amounted to 16,258, thereby adding to 30.4% of India’s aggregate runs in innings played by him.
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Only Rahul Dravid (36.1%) and Sunil Gavaskar (34.9%) have more among Indian batters with 100+ innings. He beats even Sachin Tendulkar (29.7%) and Virat Kohli (29.1%) in this department, highlighting the merit of his stay at the crease over mere scoring rate.
Time at the Crease: Deliveries Faced While Batting
Between 2010, when he made his debut, and 2023, when he retired, Cheteshwar Pujara played 33.2% of all deliveries India faced in innings in which he batted 16,217 balls himself, and 32,148 deliveries in total during which he batted. In the list of 42 international batsmen who played 100+ innings between these years, Pujara is sixth for percentage of team deliveries faced.
The Decline in Form: A Tale of Two Halves
Although he had been consistent till then, Pujara’s form in the last five years declined sharply:
From 2018 onwards: scored 34.13 in 49 Tests
5 centuries in 86 innings, from 13 in his first 90 innings
His frequency of centuries fell from 1 in every 6.4 innings to 1 in every 17.2 innings
Career average dropped from 52.96 (end of 2017) to 43.6
Nevertheless, even in his lean phase, Cheteshwar Pujara’s numbers were still better than India’s No. 3s who followed him, averaging a collective 31.95 in 45 innings.
Cheteshwar Pujara vs Those Who Followed Him at No. 3
Even in his last 24 Tests:
Pujara averaged 31.51
Faced 81.2 balls per dismissal
India’s No. 3s after Pujara:
Average: 31.95
Balls per dismissal: 56.3
Even with a visible slump, Pujara’s ability to stay at the crease was safer than his successors—yet another testament to the fact that Cheteshwar Pujara’s figures speak a larger message than mere averages.
The Legacy of Patience and Persistence
In the age of aggression and quick scoring, Cheteshwar Pujara was an old-school Test match batter a rare breed who refused to believe in anything but attrition, discipline, and technique. His Test average might have dipped, but his influence went much, much beyond stats.
From marathon innings to epic partnerships, the statistics of Cheteshwar Pujara tell the story of a career that was constructed not on runs, but on resilience, reliability, and great concentration.
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